MEASURE BEFORE HOUSE

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 190, 13 August 1938, Page 7

MEASURE BEFORE HOUSE

SUPERANNUATION BENEFITS ALLOWANCES AND QUALIFICATIONS EXPLANATION OF BILL BY MINISTER ( Special to “Chronicle.”) WELLINGTON, Aug. 12. The Social Security Bill was introduced in the House of Itepresentatives this afternoon by the Hon. W. Nash, Minister of Finance. The Bill provides the following benefits:— Age Benefit: All persons aged 60 years, it fully qualified, will receive II 10s per week income. Qualification Unmarried Person: The basic rate of benefit is reduced by £1 for every £1 of other income exceeding £52 per year. That is, the full rate of benefit can be received while the applicant also has £1 per week from elsewhere, making a total of £2 10s per week. Married Couple, both of whom are qualified: The joint benefits will be reduced by £1 for every £1 of total other income received by the married couple in excess of £52 per annum. For example: A married couple, both of whom arc qualified, can receive £3 age benefit between them, plus £1 from other sources, making a total of £4 per week. If the other income is more than £1 a week the amount of age benefit is reduced accordingly. Married person whose wife or husband is not qualified: The benefit will be £1 10s a week and the allowable income is £2 10s a week, making a total of £4 per week. Special benefit where a husband is not able to support his wife and she is not qualified for a benefit: The Commission may grant an increase of the benefit of 5s per week, plus a further 5s for each child under the age of 16 years. Residential Qualifications: Applicants must, have resided in New Zealand for not less than 10 years immediately preceding the date of application if in New Zealand on March 15, 1938, or for 20 years after that date. Computation of Income: Receipts not counted as income include funeral benefit from a friendly society, fire insurance moneys, capital received under the will of a deeeased husband or wife, and compensation or damages in respect of bodily injury up to £5OO if used for approved purposes. Property Qualification: No deduction from the benefit will be made in respect of furniture and personal effects, ownership of a house used as a home, ownership of land or other such property, interest in mortgages, or interest in insurance policies or annuities. The income, however, derived from the above properties, etc., will be taken into account when assessing the pension. UNIVERSAL SUPERANNUATION. Universal superannuation to be introduced: A special section of the Bill provides for a gradual introduction of universal kuperan nuation. It is proposed as from April 1, 1940, to pay all citizens over the age of 65 years £lO per annum, this sum to be increased by £2 10s each year until the superannuation reaches £7B per annum and entirely supersedes the age benefit of the same amount, so that universal superannuation will in 1940 be £lO, 1941 £l2 10s. 1942 £l5 and so on until £7B is reached. In the meantime, from 1940, the universal superannuation will form part of the age benefit for persons 65 years or over. The only qualification will be in regard to residence and payment of contributions. Applicants who were in New Zealand on March 15, 1935, must have been in the country for ten years immediately prior to application and all others 20 years. WIDOWS' BENEFITS. A widow with one child under 16 is to be paid £1 15s per week, two children £2 ss, three children £2 15s, four children £3 ss, with 10s per week extra for each child up to a maximum of £4 10s per week. Income Qualification: No deduction from the benefit is made unless other income is more than £llos per week. Widows without children under 16: For fully qualified widows, until they receive the age benefit on reaching the age of 60, £1 per week. Additional allowable income, £1 per week. Qualifications: (1) A widow the duration of whose marriage (plus the time during which, while a widow, she eared for her children under the age of 16) was not less than 15 years: (2) any widow who loses her husband after she is 50 years of age will receive the benefit so long as her marriage has continued for five years; (3) any other widow receives the benefit on reaching age 50 if her marriage occurred not less than 15 years previously and continued for 10 years and she was widowed after she reached 40 years of age. Special Qualifications: Women who have been deserted and .have taken maintenance proceedings will, if their husbands whereabouts arc unknown, qualify as widow if they have dependent children under 16 years of age, or in any other ease at the discretion of the Commissioners. Women whose husbands arc in a mental hospital either under a reception order or as voluntary boarders will qualify as widows if they have children under the age of 16 years, or in any other ease at the discretion of the Commissioners. Residential Qualification: A widow satisfying the marriage period qualification who has no dependent children qualifies if she and her husband were both resident in New Zealand for not less than three years prior to the death of the husband. A widow who has dependent children qualifys in respect of children who were born in New Zealand or were born while she was temporarily absent from New Zealand, or if both she and her husband were resident in New Zealand for less than three years immediately preceding the date of the husband's death or desertion or admission to a mental hospital. ORPHANS BENEFITS. Orphans' benefits of 15s per week are payable to every child under 16: (1) If both its parents are dead; (2) if it was born in New Zealand or its last surviving parent ’raided in New Zealand for three years prior to his death; (3) so long as it is not being maintained in a State institution the rate of benefit will be fixed by the Commission in its discretion up to 15s per week. Any property owned by the child and any special circumstances will be taken into account when fixing the rate of benefit. Payments of orphan’s benefit will be made to the guardian for the benefit of the child.